The Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday cut ties with nine-time All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel, designating him for assignment and recalling reliever Bryan Baker from the minors.
The move could signal the end of what has been an incredibly successful 15-year career for Kimbrel that saw him pitch for eight different teams.
Signed by the Orioles to a one-year, $13 million contract this offseason, the right-hander had an outstanding first half, entering the All-Star break with 23 saves and a 2.80 ERA in 35 ⅓ innings.
But since then, Kimbrel, 36, has completely imploded. In 17 innings in the second half, he’s given up 22 hits and 15 walks, while pitching to a 10.59 ERA.
Kimbrel’s situation in Baltimore is eerily similar to what happened last season when he was a member of the Philadelphia Phillies – when he signed with a playoff-caliber team the previous winter and thrived as closer for the first half of the season, only to see everything come crumbling down late in the season.
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Kimbrel was a National League All-Star with the Phillies in 2023, but blew several saves down the stretch, including Game 4 of the National League Championship Series, when he gave up a game-tying two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to Arizona’s Alex Thomas and ended up taking the loss.
In 2022, Kimbrel served as the Los Angeles Dodgers’ closer for most of the season, but struggled down the stretch to the point where he wasn’t included on the club’s postseason roster.
If this is indeed the end of the line, Kimbrel can reflect on a career that could potentially land him in the Hall of Fame. He led the National League in saves for four consecutive seasons from 2011-2014 as a member of the Atlanta Braves, and his career total of 440 saves places him fifth on the all-time list.
Kimbrel has an overall record of 56-47 and a 2.59 ERA over 809 ⅔ innings with the Braves, Padres, Red Sox, Cubs, White Sox, Dodgers, Phillies and Orioles.
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